I’m not going to lie, this family, sometimes, has (!gasp!) fast food for dinner. We allow our children to have pop (you crazy people call it soda) while at a theme park and occasionally at home or elsewhere if the situation warrants – we love pop for belly aches, or to wake up sleepy kids who were up late gaming (another no-no) because they like the flavor or because Mom or Dad has one sitting on the table and they want a sip of something. We even, now sit down when I tell you this, feed our children junk food, sugary cereal, sports drinks filled with sugar! I could go on and on and on. Fingers would be pointed. You’re already judging me… I know you are. Here’s the thing – we don’t care. The kids are healthy, happy, and know these are treats. Heck, sometimes even their pediatrician says to give them some of these things because my kids are skinny and could use a little extra.
Yes, I realize I’m lucky. Obesity is not a problem for my kids’, but I attribute this not just to their good metabolism, but to our reasonable food and drink expectations. Sometimes it’s really ok to say ‘Yes.’ Just like the First Lady will tell you she allows cake and candy, she pushes veggies and water. For the most part – 75% of the time – our kids eat and drink appropriately and within the guidelines you see coming from most doctors and officials. However, that other 25% we are just fine with junk food night. Just fine with those drinks, so long as it doesn’t mess up bedtime. If you say ‘No’ to all of it, they are going to see it as some taboo, rebellious act simply to eat what is advertised. No one wants that. Kids absolutely love to do all the things we as parents want them NOT to do. I’m certainly not going to make food and drink a battlefield when there are so many more important wars to be fought from drugs to sex to education. You want a Friday night of nothing but licorice, soda, & lollipops… with a side of pizza, burgers, and fries? No problem. We’ll even make a celebration of it because it can be so much fun. The next day they are back to drinking water and eating all of their broccoli with the fish Dad grilled. 
Food and drink have become political due to the very serious problems we have as a nation finding balance and moderation. As a Mom, I hope I’m sticking that balance early and with some silly fun… because sometimes it really is only food and drink and it really only is silly fun, not a war to be won.
How do you keep your kids healthy yet not make this issue a fight at the fridge? I’d love to hear you tips and tricks… Leave a comment below and you’ll be entered for a chance to win a $100 Visa gift card!
“Coke, Dr Pepper and Pepsi understand that getting a balanced mix of foods, drinks and physical activities for your family isn’t always easy. That’s why they’re coming together for the first time ever to talk to teens about balancing what they eat and drink with what they do. With tools to help teens get active and information to help them think about when they’ve had too much, or maybe when it’s time for a treat—America’s beverage companies are supporting our efforts to find a balanced mix that works for our families.”
Visit www.DeliveringChoices.org to learn more about Mixify and finding balance for your family. MyMixify is also on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Sweepstakes Rules:
No duplicate comments.
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
- Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
- Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: “#SweepstakesEntry”; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
- Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
- For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. The notification email will come directly from BlogHer via the sweeps@blogher email address. You will have 72 hours to respond; otherwise a new winner will be selected.
The Official Rules are available here.
This sweepstakes runs from 11/12/14 – 12/24/14.
Be sure to visit the American Beverage Association brand page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ posts!
KEEP THE FRIDGE STOCKED WITH HEALTHY FOOD- THEN IT DOESN’T MATTER HOW MUCH THEY EAT, BECAUSE IT’S ALL HEALTHY ANYWAY! =)
https://twitter.com/kytah00/status/544711089355628544
I don’t buy the crappy food period that way there is no option for them.
https://twitter.com/1amypugmire/status/544748601256075264
we drink alot water
https://twitter.com/purplelover04/status/545692763765760000
i tweeted https://twitter.com/purplelover04/status/545692763765760000
I keep cut up fruits and vegetables for easy healthy snacks.
Basketball was our main sport in grade school years. Sprinkled with tennis, hiking, biking. I have to confess that as parents we watched too much TV, but our kids luckily didn’t follow our example. Our kids grew up before the smartphone era, but we refused to have Gameboys, X-Box, etc. They still do not have urge to be gamers. Our diet consisted of too much sugar and grain starches, but I was less informed then than now. Issues of activity, electronics, and diet for my grandkids now are addressed by limiting time with electronics and amount of sugary.starch foods, while encouraging more activity with playtime, and more vegetables and meats.
Balance, not banish
we eat well and try to stay active as a family; i keep good for in the house and try to encourage good eating habits
my tweet https://twitter.com/LuLu_Brown24/status/546328554623889408
I keep my family balanced by making sure to eat a healthy diet by cooking healthy meals every day! We also get plenty of exercise and play time to relax! It is so important to me to make sure that my family stays healthy by having structure and keeping a schedule!
jewelwood55(at)gmail(dot)com
https://twitter.com/JewelWood/status/546331323082625024
jewelwood55(at)gmail(dot)com
I try not to bring a lot of unhealthy foods in our house that way no one overindulges on them. I would eat sugar all day long if it were in the house and so would my kids!
Link to tweet:
https://twitter.com/catholicfanatic/status/546526803775336450
Thank you!
I just make sure that our meals are healthy and mostly homemade. There are always healthy choices in the house for a snack. Sometimes there is junk food too. I find that my kids really like lots of healthy foods and when offered the good stuff, sometimes choose it over the junk!
I always encourage healthy snacks. And our kids are also involved in a lot of sports.
tweeted: https://twitter.com/KerryBishop/status/546701221776457728
I let my kids have soda occasionally.
Everyone comes home on Sunday for a together dinner.
gmissycat at yahoo dot com
Tweeted
https://twitter.com/gmissycat/status/546823935644667904
Our daughter is still young and a bit picky, but our rule is you have to taste everything on your plate – even if you don’t eat it all. She’s recently discovered she likes sweet potatoes as a result.
no soda in the house
Making healthy food into fun shapes makes eating more fun for the kids.
https://twitter.com/ERASweepstakes/status/547386968582025216
http://erasweepstakes.blogspot.com/2014/12/no-fight-at-my-fridge.html
I don’t have kids, but both me and my hubby can be very immature when it comes to food. LOL It is a constant struggle to get both of us to eat healthy. We buy good food but crave the bad. We have found that buying our groceries 2 weeks at a time helps. When there is plenty at home that we WANT to eat, we are less likely to eat out.
I put veggies in every meal I do. I try to put a lot of seasoning in them.
tweet
https://twitter.com/aes529/status/547761080668540928
we eat healthy meals and try to exercise regularly as a routine
We make homemade meals, drink water and no sodas, try to stay active, and eat all our meals together !
My tweet https://twitter.com/AurelieRed/status/547792868593524736
I say they can have one small dessert if they eat healthy all day.
tweeted
https://twitter.com/thomasmurphy40/status/547841577121378304
No food after 8pm.
I try to make sure to add vegetables to every meal and that we eat dinner together as a family nightly with no electronics
tbarrettno1 at gmail dot com
tweet https://twitter.com/ChelleB36/status/547893204817702912
tbarrettno1 at gmail dot com
My boys love fruit so I keep baggies of sliced fruits, grapes, etc…in the fridge for quick and healthy snacking.
eswright18 at gmail dot com
Tweeted
https://twitter.com/eswright18/status/547897569154584576
I hide lots of veggies inside casseroles — they never know the difference!
tweet https://twitter.com/electricstar/status/547915214499217408